Saddle.



C.I'A. PERSONS.

SADDLE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-3,1915.

Patented Mar. 7, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

C. A. PERSONS. SADDLE. APPLICATION FILED AUG-3,1915- 1 ,174=,177. Patented Mar. 7,1916.

- 3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

c. A. PERSONS. I

,SADD'LE.

APPLICATION FILED mafia. [915,

Patented Mar. 7, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3 THB COLUMBIA PUEIOORAPH 60-, WASHINGTON, n.

CHARLES A. PERSONS, OE WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

' SADDLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 3, 1915. Serial No. 43,460.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES A. PERSONS, a citizen of the United States, residing at WVorcester, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Saddles, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to saddles of the character used on bicycles, motorcycles and similar vehicles, and they will be hereinafter referred to for convenience simply as saddles The invention aims to devise a saddle of this character which shall be thoroughly substantial in construction, shall have the resiliency and easy riding qualities desirable in articles of this character and yet shall be so constructed that it can be economically manufactured.

The invention is directed particularly to a novel spring construction forsupporting the rear portion of the saddle seat and also to an improved support for the pommel portion of the seat.

The invention will be readily understood from the following description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a saddle embodying the invention, a part of the seat portion of the saddle being cut away at the pommel to show the underlying structure;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a modified" form of spring support for the saddle; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the saddle shown in Fig. 1 but showing it tipped upso as to expose to view the parts under the seat; Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a modified construction; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view showing a further modification. Fig. 6 is a side elevation showing another modification; anding of a torsion spring 12 and a tension spring .10 connected together sothat one tially parallel witheach other.

spring acts through the other. As shown, a

the lower end of each spring being secured to the lower end of its adjacent leg 6 as clearly shown in Fig.3. The upper end of each tension spring is hung on the upper end of its companion torsion spring 12, while the lower end of the torsion springs are secured" by bolts 14: to the rear ends of the respective truss members 4. These torsion springs preferably are arranged 1n verticalplanes lying parallel to the length of the saddle (the term vertical, of course, having reference to the normal position of the saddle) and the two ends or legs of each spring 12 coiled portion of the spring, so that they point'in the same direction and lie substan- The adjacent upper ends of the companion springs 10 and 12 are shaped to form eyes through which a bolt 16 is placed to secure them togetherh A short U-shaped brace 18, clearly shown in Fig. 1, also is provided at its opposite ends with similar eyes and the bolts 16 extend, respectively, through theseeyes and clamp the brace to the junctions of the respective pairs of springs to steady them" against lateral movement.

It'will be evident from an inspection of the drawings that the weight of the rider, which, of course, comes chiefly on the rear portion of the saddle, will be transmitted from the cantle plate through the rods 6" to the lower ends of the two springs, 10. This force will be'yieldingly transmitted through the two pairs of springs 10 and 12 to the main support or trusst of the saddle. The suspension of each spring 10 on a torsion spring in the manner shown provides a support which is very resilient. The parallel legs of each spring 12 serve as lever arms with which to tension the spring, and since the spring 10 is hung on one of these arms it is a-very easy matter to so proportion the springs and the length of these arms as to produce a remarkably easy riding saddle.

The arrangement shown in Fig. 2 differs from that shown in Figs. 1 and 3 merely in the construction of the torsion spring. The

Patented Mar. 7, 1916.

. extend forward horizontally beyond'ithe spring indicated at 12" corresponds to that shown at the right of Fig. 1; but, while the legs or ends of the spring 12' extend parallel .middle portion of this wire is formed into an eye 13 through which the bolts 14 extend and thus secure it to the truss member 4. This arrangement has the advantage of providing a spring having the same sustaining power as that of the corresponding spring 12 shown in Fig. l but having in it more wire of a smaller size and, therefore, is more resilient.

In the arrangement shown in Fig. l, each torsion spring 12 (corresponding to the spring 12 of Fig. 1) is made integral with one of the truss members 4; that is, the lower leg of each torsion spring is continued forward to form the truss member. In this arrangement also compression springs 20 are substituted for the tension springs 10 of Fig. 1. A spring 20 is interposed between each torsion spring and the cantle plate of the saddle, the lower end of the spring 20 being secured to the upper end of the torsion spring by a bolt 21 and the upper end of the compression spring being bolted to the cantle late. p Fig. 5 shows a further modification which is like that shown in Fig. 4 except that the torsion spring 12 has only a partial turn 1 instead of being. coiled as in the arrangement shown in the other figures.

A further feature of this invention resides in a novel construction of the parts that support, the pommel portion of the seat. This part of the seat usually is supthe upward throw of the spring following such a yielding movement in order to prevent the pommel of the saddle from striking the rider a blow. In the arrangement shown the pommel portio-n'of the saddle is supported by a pair of torsion springs 2% which act; as and in effect are a single spring, the lower end of this spring being supported by the forward portion of the truss 4:- The upper ends of the spring 24: are all riveted into or otherwise secured in the vertical part of a shackle 26. A bracket 28, curved to conform to the pommel portion of the seat, constitutes the immediate support for this part of the seat, this member being provided with a vertical arm which is secured by a bolt 30 to the shackle 26.

A V-shaped stay rod 32 lies just under the seat 2, extending longitudinally of the saddle and having the ends of its legs secured to the cantle plate by the bolts 8 and its apex lying adjacent to the spring .242. As clearly shown in Fig. 1, the shackle 26 is provided at its upper end with an extension 27 which is curved over until it lies parallel to the part 26 and this extension is provided with two shoulders onwhich the legs of the stay rest at points adjacent to the apex while the curved intermediate portion of the shackle overlies the apex of the .stay.v .It.

will now be evident that, when an unusual force is exerted on the pommel portion of the saddle, this force will be transmitted through the bracket-.28 to the upper end of the spring 24. This end of the spring, of course, will yield downwardly to cushion the shock and this movement will not be interfered with by the stay 32. The rebound of the spring, however, will be limited by the peculiar connection between the upper end of the spring and the stay 32, the stay and shackle cooperating to effect this result. This construction also is of advantage in assembling the saddle since it is merely necessary to turn the stay or shackle until the part 27 lies substantially parallel tothe slot in the stay when they may be slid to gether and turned to bring them into the relationshipin which they are shownin Fig. 1.,

The modification shown in Figs. 6 and. 7 differs from the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 3 merely in that a cone shaped compressionspring 35 is interposed betweeneach tension spring 10 andthe horizontal part of the bridge piece 6. This spring encircles the part 6 andpreferably is supported on the tension spring 10 by having two or three turns 85' formed at its lower-end of such a diameter that they will fit snugly inside the "upper part of the tension spring. Thecompression spring thus acts through a portion of the tension spring and through the torsion spring 12. An advantage of this arrangement is that, as the seat descends and the springs yield to cushion the movement, the base of the conical spring 35 will yield, thus giving the compression spring a very easy action.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a saddle having a main support, the combination with a seat and a cantle plate for said seat, of two torsion springs each having two ends extending in the same direction beyond the coiled portion of the spring, and lying in vertical planes, the

lower ends of said springs being connected to said sup ort, and two coiled springs arranged to support said cantle plate and havlng thelr axes extendlng 1n the direction of the height of the saddle, said coiled. springs being supported, respectively, upon the lower ends of both torsionsprings to said support, and means for securing the upper end of each torsion spring to they upper end of its adjacent tension spring.

3. In a saddle having a main support, the combination with a seat and a cantle plate for said seat, of two torsion springs each having two ends extending in the same direction beyond the coiled portion of the spring, and lying in vertical planes, the

lower ends of said springs being supported by said main support, and two coiled springs arranged to support said cantle plate and having their axes extending vertically, said coiled springs being supported, respectively, upon the upper ends of said torsion springs.

I. In a saddle, the combination with a seat and a truss, of a spring supported by the truss and supporting the pommel portion of the saddle, a stay extending longitudinally of the saddle, and means connecting said stay and the upper part of the spring and cooperating with said stay to limit the upward movement of the upper end of said spring but permitting the free downward movement of the same.

5. In a saddle, the combination with a seat and a truss, of a spring supported by the truss and supporting the pommel portion of the saddle, a shackle secured to the upper portion of the spring and a stay connected to the cantle plate of the saddle and to said shackle, said shackle being constructed and arranged to cooperate with the stay in limiting the upward movement of the pommel portion of the saddle relatively to said truss but to permit the free downward movement of the pommel portion of the saddle against the action of said spring.

6. In a saddle, the combination with a seat and a truss, of a spring supported by the truss and supporting the pommel portion of the saddle, a shackle rigidly secured to the upper end of said spring, a V-shaped stay having its legs secured to the cantle plate of the saddle and its apex connected to said shackle, said shackle having shoulders supporting the legs of the stay near its apex and a part adjacent to said shoulders overlying the apex of said stay and preventing upward movement of said apex portion of'the stay.

7. A spring supporting mechanism for the cantle plate of a saddle, comprising in combination, a main support, two torsion springs, each having two ends extending in substantially the same direction beyond the coiled portion of the spring and lying in vertical planes, one end of each of said springs being supported by said main support, and two coiled springs arranged to support the cantle plate and themselves supported on the free ends of said torsion spring.

8. In a saddle having a main support, the combination with a seat and a cantle plate for said seat, of two torsion springs each having two ends extending in substantially the same direction and lying in vertical planes, one'end of each of said springs being connected to said support, two coiled tension springs connected with said cantle plate and having theiraxes extending in the direction of the height of the saddle, said tension springs being supported, respectively, upon the'free ends of said torsion spring, and two conical compression springs supported, respectively, on said tension springs and extendingco-axially with the tension springs, said compression springs being arranged to aid the other springs in resisting downward movement of the seat. I

9. In a saddle having a main support, the combination with a seat and a cantle plate for saidseat, of two rods depending from said cantle plate, a coiled tension spring encircling each rod and having its lower end secured to the lower end of said rod,

two torsion springs positioned, respectively, adjacent to said tension springs and each having its ends extending in the same direction beyond the coiled portion of the spring and lying in a vertical plane, means 'for securing the lower ends of both torsion name to this specification.

CHARLES A. PERSONS.

Cogies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each. by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, 13.0. 

